No accounting for taste: Pete's Top 20 Albums for 2017

Monday

I've already shared my 27 albums you missed in 2017 and rated 2017 albums by superstars over 60, but that still left a few favorites from the past year that I had yet to mention, somehow.

So I've gone against my better judgement and come up with a list of my top 20 albums for the year, based on how frequently they rose to the top of my listening rotation. (Disclaimer: As a part-time critic, there were literally thousands of albums I didn't hear in 2017 -- so my apologies if one of them should have been on here but isn't. Second disclaimer: If you ask me again next week you'd probably get a completely different list.)

So let's count 'em down! (Spotify playlist of the highlighted tracks at the bottom of the post, natch.)

20) “Beautiful Trauma,” P!nk. Gloriously potty-mouthed, funny as hell and with pipes to spare, P!nk continues to be the pop diva even grown-ups can appreciate. LISTEN TO: “Revenge” (with Eminem)

18) “Windy City,” Alison Krauss. Krauss’s quaver is on full display for this disc of loving traditional country covers, including Roger Miller’s “River in the Rain” and the late great Glen Campbell’s “Gentle On My Mind.” LISTEN TO: “River in the Rain”

17) “Pollinator,” Blondie. No way Debbie Harry should be able to deliver an album this vibrant at age 72 (!), but darn if she doesn’t pull it off. LISTEN TO: “Long Time”

16) “Hang,” Foxygen. Either a spoof or an embrace of ‘70s rock tropes (or both), it’s the best glam-disco-Broadway album you’ll hear this year. LISTEN TO: “America”

14) “Soul of a Woman,” Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings. Kills me that she’s gone, but I’m glad we got one more soaring, self-assured soul collection to remember her by. LISTEN TO: “Matter of Time”

13) “Everything Now,” Arcade Fire. Arcade Fire backlash seemed to be all the rage this year, but I’m not sure why -- I thought this album, which takes on our culture of immediate gratification and hints that maybe we should slow down a little, was classic AF. And I for one don’t mind a catchy melody or two. LISTEN TO: “Everything Now”

12) “Roll With The Punches,” Van Morrison. Van should stick with the blues -- and with Jeff Beck as his axeman. His best in years. LISTEN TO: “Transformation”

11) “Graveyard Whistling,” Old 97’s. These guys never fail to make you feel you can handle anything life throws out you if you’ve got the right company. LISTEN TO: “Drinkin’ Song”

10) “If All I Was Was Black,” Mavis Staples. Soulful, gospel-tinged songs about being a decent human being, and nobody does decency like Mavis. LISTEN TO: “Try Harder”

9) “Songs of Experience,” U2. My apologies to those of you who are all Bono-ed out, but this disc shows the boys still got it -- as in, an ability to create vigorous rock tracks that sound fresh enough for modern audiences while containing just enough classic U2 flourishes to satisfy the long-timers. A step up from the OK giveaway “Songs of Innocence.” LISTEN TO: “The Showman (Little More Better)”

8) “Undivided Heart & Soul,” JD McPherson. Love how McPherson delves into garage-rock blues, Merseybeat and even glam while keeping what is fast becoming his signature sound. Catch him live if you can. LISTEN TO: “Under the Spell of City Lights”

7) “The Nashville Sound,” Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit. Heir to Springsteen for unvarnished everyman lyrics, Isbell does it again here his most crushing and beautiful collection to date. LISTEN TO: “If We Were Vampires”

6) “Masseduction,” St. Vincent. Clever, funny, melancholy, biting, offbeat, inscrutable and yet somehow accessible -- St. Vincent is all these things and more on “Masseduction,” also bringing killer riffs and achingly winsome vocals to the latest brilliant offering from Annie Clark’s alter ego. LISTEN TO: “Fear the Future”

5) “Gathering,” Josh Ritter. Ritter continues to miraculously blend joy and melancholy in equal measures, often within the same turn of phrase. LISTEN TO: “Showboat”

4) “Soulfire,” Little Steven. How can you not love this highly personal and jubilant rock-and-soul release, which is awash with horns, wall-of-sound backing vocals and a randy garage rock vibe? More please, Steven. LISTEN TO: “Soulfire”

3) “We All Want The Same Things,” Craig Finn. No one does confused, emotionally bereft men and the determined, long-suffering women who put up with them like Finn. Best listened to from beginning to end every time. LISTEN TO: “Ninety Bucks”

2) “The Navigator,” Hurray For The Riff Raff. Set up like a Broadway musical, Alynda Segarra jumps light years ahead on this ambitious disc, creating a brilliant character study chock full of vivid scenes of both hope and despair. LISTEN TO: “Pa’lante”

1) “Pussycat,” Juliana Hatfield. Yes, I like how she takes it to Trump on unvarnished screeds like “When You’re A Star” and “Short-Fingered Man.” But it’s Hatfield’s dead-on depiction of the upheaval caused by societal divisions -- within our nation, our neighborhoods and our families -- that make this an instant (and important) classic. LISTEN TO: “You’re Breaking My Heart”